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First Peoples House | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC

Alfred Waugh Architect

This 12,875 sq ft (1196 sqm), multi-purpose educational facility is located on the Universityof Victoria Campus and is the only major wood structure centrally located at its heart. Theuniversity made an exception allowing a wood structure clad in cedar as this material is ofsymbolic and cultural importance to the First Nations people along the northwest coast. Thefacility houses the Indigenous Graduate Student Union, Native Student Union, classrooms,faculty and counselling offices, elders and student lounges, study space and a ceremonialspace. The Office of Indigenous Affairs and the University of Victoria’s main objective was to develop a building design which honours the identity and pride of the First Nations studentson a local as well as national level, instilling the following mission statements.

To provide a welcoming, supporting environment for First Nations students. Acting as ahome away from home, the centre will be a place of culture, honour and spirit.

To provide an enduring invitation to the world to share and enjoy First Nations culture

The design celebrates First Nations culture through the use of cedar inside and outside thebuilding and is symbolic to the importance of this material to the First Nations of thenorthwest coast. The architect assisted the university in locating and purchasing FirstNations salvaged western red cedar a year before construction to ensure adequatepreparation time for the material. Alana Husby of Coast Ecotimber Inc. sourced the ‘Clear A’ edge-grained cedar from the Dididat Nation located along the northwest coast of VancouverIsland for the interior and exterior siding as well as the house posts and carved doors. LyleForest Products Ltd. milled the profiled 2x10 exterior and the 1x10 interior planks. RobertLester, owner of Lyle Forest Products, quoted the cedar sourced for this project as one ofthe best grades he has seen in 45 years.

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The design strategy focuses the experience, whether inside or outside, on the use of cedaras a cladding material inspired from large planks used in the past and the grand post andbeam structures used by the coastal First Nations. The building is split into three volumes,with a large sloped roof covering the ceremonial hall and classrooms, and the lower roofenclosing administration block. The use of heavy timber structure for the larger volumerepresents the Coast Salish longhouse and each enclosed room is defined by this post andbeam structure. The heavy timber reveals the structural expression at the main entrancecanopy and the entrance lobby. The glulaminated beams from the ceremonial hall andclassrooms project beyond their enclosure to define the public corridors. This designstrategy uses western red cedar cladding to articulate the program in the building and thedescending volume under the main roof corresponds to the decreasing size of rooms fromeast to west. Wrapping the outside and inside of the classroom wing and ceremonial hallwith western red cedar under the main roof and then connecting all three building volumeswith a ribbon of glass clearly defines each programmatic element.

The predominant use of western red cedar is in the use of plank board cladding. Theexterior rain screen cladding is profiled 235 mm wide x 32 mm deep, board finished on oneside and two edges. The interior is clad in a matching 235 mm wide x 19 mm deep boardbacked by acoustic insulation. On the exterior, the cedar planks are spaced 250 mm oncentre, serving as a rain screen and fastened to vertical nailers in a controlled pattern withstainless steel fasteners. Access panels for fire sprinkler drain valves and pond controls areconcealed behind carefully designed flush-mounted, cedar-clad panels. A visual screenenclosing the fish cleaning areas is alternately clad with western red cedar fastened insideand outside of the enclosure to allow natural light to penetrate and add interest to thefaçade.

The university required the architect to design a visual element to provide sun shading forthe clerestory and visually screen root-top services highly visible from adjacent buildings.The solution was resolved by using 38 mm x 140 mm western red cedar profiled louversscrew fastened to aluminum frames.

The Ceremonial Hall, the heart of the building, is a sacred space celebrating the use of redcedar as the cultural blood of the Coastal Salish people. The lower wall and bleachers areclad by 19 mm x 235 mm cedar boards and the upper wall is clad in woven 6 mm x 45 mmwestern red cedar panels spaced at 1500 mm on centre, contained in 64 mm x 38 mmframes.

Art is an integral part of First Nations’ culture and this project incorporates two sets of carved cedar house posts, carved ceremonial doors and eight carved inset panels in theCeremonial Hall. The upper walls of the Ceremonial Hall are woven cedar panels inspiredby the bulrush mat that lined the interior log houses of the past.

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Wood materials used:

Interior wall cladding 19 x 235 (1x10) “A Clear” red cedar –First Nationssalvaged S1s+2E KD boards

Interior woven cedar wall panels 38x64 clear red cedar frame with 6 x 45 clear wovencedar strips

Wood doors and ventilation transoms Maple veneer, plan sliced, A grade, veneer overMDF/poplar core for doors and 16 mm to 19 mm plywoodfor ventilation transoms

Acoustic wood ceiling Red cedar veneer-faced 19 x 35 MDF planksExterior rain screen wall cladding 32 x 235 (2x10 red cedar, profiled “A Clear” First Nations

salvaged S1s+2E KD boardsClerestory wood sunshades 38 x 140 profiled “Clear A” cedar louvers screw fastened

to aluminum framesBridge construction 64 x 235 pressure-treated Douglas fir decking on

glulaminated structural unitsMain building structure Glulaminated units with tight-fit Steri-Strips tight pin

fasteners and galvanized steel base connectorsWall framing 38 x 140 (2 x 6) soft wood framingPlywood sheathing 16 mm T&G roof decking; 13 mm shear wall sheathingExterior canopy roof decking 38 x 149 T&G hem-fir deckingLower roof structure 356 mm deep wood I joistsWood flooring 19 mm clear-edge grain Douglas firCarved cedar house posts Clear red cedar - First Nations salvaged woodInset cedar panels Clear red cedar - First Nations salvaged wood

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Project team:

Client:The University of VictoriaUniversity of VictoriaVictoria, BCV8W 2Y2250.721.7597

Architectural & Interior Design:Alfred Waugh Architect100 Park Royal South, Suite 1104West Vancouver, BCV7T 1A2604.913.3116

Structural:Equilibrium Consulting Inc204-388 West 8th AvenueVancouver, BCV5Y 2X3604.730.1422

Contractor:Knappett Projects Inc.501 Kelvin RoadVictoria, BCV8X 1C4250.475.6333